I was asked to speak to a class of MBA students the other day about networking, and I asked ‘who likes to network?’ Of the 40 or so people in the room, THREE people raised their hands! It was a fairly early Saturday morning, maybe the caffeine hadn’t quite kicked in, but three out of 40?
When you network, you get acquainted with people, talk to them about who you are, what you do, how someone might do business with you or your company. You also listen (the good networkers try to do this first) and learn, who they are, what they’re about, what will help them in their role in their company.
Do you like to network? If you are like a lot of smart professionals who are required to network at least part of the time in their jobs, you do not relish the ‘meaningful-conversation-with-a-complete-stranger’ assignment, yet the odds favor the skilled networker, whether it’s a natural skill, or learned.
Let me suggest a solution to your possible discomfort with networking. It’s called Toastmasters. Maybe you’ve heard of it? How can Toastmasters help you improve your networking skills? You speak on your feet in Toastmasters, you also listen, and evaluate others’ efforts; so you build communications skill, a pivotal tool for the networker. Toastmasters also teaches off-the-cuff speaking.
Ever get asked a question in a meeting that you didn’t expect, and the first word out of your mouth was “uhhhh?” If communicating in front of a group, whether you know them well, a little bit, or not at all, may not be in your top-five Gallop StrengthsFinder result, this idea might be for you.
If you care about a subject and become knowledgeable about it, it’s a good bet that you will be asked to speak about it at some point in your life.
If you count yourself in the majority of that Saturday morning group – btw, great Q&A session at the end, six or seven people asked the dozen or so questions; 33-plus listened and observed respectfully, yet were not noticed. When you network, you need to be willing to be noticed.
So check out this nobody-gets-fired, let’s-help-each-other-get-better public speaking program called Toastmasters. It’s been a good friend to me, and I’ve watched it change a lot of people into respectable, stand-up communicators. It nurtures your networking skills, and makes it more fun to meet and connect with people.
And that’s a career-enhancing, job-seeking game-changer!